GMC announces fee cut for doctors new to practice

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05 Dec 2012

For the second year in a row newly qualified doctors and those in training will benefit from a GMC fee cut.

Last year for the first time in the history of the GMC we cut the annual fee paid by all doctors, and this year we have been able to freeze the fee at that level and target further cuts for doctors who are new to practice.

Niall Dickson, the Chief Executive of the GMC

The fee freeze and targeted cuts follow a reduction in the fee last year - the first time in history that it had been cut.

The changes were announced as part of a package of measures agreed by the GMC’s Council at its meeting today. The details include:

The Annual Retention Fee frozen at £390 for doctors holding registration with a licence to practise, and at £140 for doctors holding registration without a licence.

The registration fee for newly qualified doctors will reduce from £195 to £185.

The provisional registration fee will reduce from £95 to £90.

The threshold to qualify for the income discount will be increased from £30k to £31k. Meaning any doctor whose total gross annual world-wide income from all sources is less than £31,000 will qualify for a 50% reduction in their annual retention fees due after 1 April 2013.

The reductions are effective from 1 April 2013.

The freezing and reduction of fees has been made possible by improving the efficiency of the GMC’s operations.

Niall Dickson, the Chief Executive of the GMC, said:

‘We recognise that these are challenging times, especially for doctors at the start of their careers. We also have a responsibility to provide value for money and, as far as we can, to control our costs.

‘Last year for the first time in the history of the GMC we cut the annual fee paid by all doctors, and this year we have been able to freeze the fee at that level and target further cuts for doctors who are new to practice.

‘At the same time, we are facing significant increases in the demand for our services and we are delivering major initiatives such as revalidation and the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service. Inevitably future pressures are uncertain but we remain absolutely committed to being as efficient and as effective as possible.’

Notes to Editors:

The GMC is encouraging all doctors to sign up to GMC Online for a quick, easy and secure way to pay their Annual Retention Fee. Doctors can now use GMC Online to sign up to e-billing and set up and manage a Direct Debit. More information about how to sign up to the service is available in the Registrations section of our website.